Dearest Praetor
by CrystalMoonlightII
Summary: Nero has a sworn duty to protect her master. Countless months at his side within the Moon Cell have brought her to hide a secret adoration deep within. Guided by pride and passion, the empress makes her stand. Nobody will lay a finger upon her praetor. Nobody. (A short Fate/Extra oneshot!)


**I had a little free time and needed to flex my creative muscles. That, and I'm quite the fan of Fate and anything Nasu. So, I thought I'd throw a little something together with Fate/Extra Saber. I'm not sure what else to say. If you enjoy it then please let me know!**

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 **Dearest Praetor**

Enemies towered to the left and to the right. Rain beat down hard in the digital streets of the Moon Cell. The downpour acted as a reminder, a powerful jolt to the sense of purpose of a crimson empress. Her reputation brought with it a mire of love and hate in equal measure. After all, the truth, the words her subjects uttered in her final moments were far too painful.

 _Nero fiddled while Rome burned._

That she did, from the balcony of her palace she played a melody while those she had promised to protect cried out in anguish. A beloved leader to some – a hated tyrant to others. Regardless of the difficult revelation, Nero Caesar had a new purpose. More than that, she had a second lease of life.

Reborn into a world of computer imagery and glowing data streams, the proud, haughty ruler had one purpose.

She had to guard her master – it was her duty to preserve the life of her beloved Praetor. Thus, the path ahead was clear, and for the first time in millennia, she bore no questions. No hesitation. There was but a single choice.

Turning back, the elegant frills of her rouge dress fluttering in the evening wind, she brought a pair of powerful rose red eyes upon the one whom she served.

Hakuno, the man to which she had been generous enough to extend her hand. He stood there – stoic and calculating in his mannerisms. However, Nero was quietly thankful for one thing – something she'd never admit too strongly.

The eyes of her master, his quiet trust and adoration, brought to life flames the likes of which bore the same passion as those that scorched her homeland. They flooded her proud heart with such opulent glee.

She swung her mighty blade, the Aestus Estus behind her back. Stepping through the puddles, she dematerialized her armament as to reach out and rest two pale, slender hands upon Hakuno's tense shoulders.

He shuddered at her touch, his deep brown eyes widening in surprise. The way he looked upon her, so innocently with a hint of compassion, it was enough to quicken the pulse.

"S-saber," he breathed hard, cautiously moving his own hands to coil around her petite waist – a showing of affection she would not reject, given the circumstances. "I want you to know that… I believe in you. My faith is yours… and if we don't make It out of this then there's something you should know..."

He paused, his hands slinking tighter around her middle as their enemies approached with slow, lumbering footsteps. "Nero… my queen. I lov-"

No – this would not do. Such sorrowful confessions were not acceptable. If her master were to admit the full extent of his passions, it would be in the warmth of their room, gazing upon the setting sun from the window, not here.

"Silence, Praetor," she shushed him with a finger upon the lips, smiling softly, sweetly. "Our end will not come here, today… for I am far beyond these peons that surround us. I am Nero Claudius Caeser. You would do well to remember that."

The esteemed lady of red took a deep breath. It was time to convey a privilege upon her master – a symbol of their future together.

Yet the act of doing so, of leaning in to close the gap between them, brought her motions to a painful shortness, and her cheeks to a searing red. "Gods be damned. I shall not fear the full extent of my heart. Praetor… my loyal and faithful master, YOU ARE MINE!"

Nero swung in with power and flare, bringing her tender lips to meet with the softness of the one she served. He seemed to tense at first, but relaxed just as quickly as his initial hesitation had began. With him calm at last she was free to enjoy the moment.

The softness of his lips entwined with her own in a powerful, heated union. She tasted him, showing her dominance as ruler, the heat of her body offset by the cooling droplets of rainwater that sang out from the heavens above, drenching her delicate porcelain skin.

Breaking their bond at last, contented in the knowledge that the object of her desires had been granted enough, she separated, taking a single swift fraction of time to lap the string of glistening saliva that kept them joined.

As her master stood there, silent and dumbfounded, Nero beamed with determination, puffing out her chest and pulling her sword from the confines of the magical ether.

"Stay here, Master," she instructed with a stern nod of the head, the dampness of raindrops soaking her beautiful dress even further. "I shall deal with these fools for you. Consider it a showing of my gratitude… for I am a generous empress."

Turning back to face their foes, the lifeless, hunks of data in their various destructive shapes and sizes, Nero let out a snooty laugh, charging her mighty blade with the essence of regal power.

"You bothersome fools have barred the path of myself and the one I serve for too long. Well, no more. I wish to return home and take a bath."

In a wave of mighty fire, she blitzed onward – an ever powerful, ever graceful deliverer of righteous, musical destruction. With every elegant swish of her weapon yet another aggressor collapsed, filling her with elation.

"How troublesome it is being me… a creature of such beauty and yet such strength. Regardless, if it is for my Praetor… my loyal and devoted Hakuno... then I shall step forth and deliver judgement gladly. None shall take what I hold dear."

The Moon Cell was her home, her Valhalla of which there were to be no trespassers. Rogue AI's and attack programs could try as they might to disrupt her peace, but none would succeed.

She was in total control – refined and beautiful, and if it were in the service of her master, Nero would fight the whole world. It was her right, her obligation.

To be a ruler of men, a creator, a mistress of the art of music, brought with it heavy burdens, but none were more suited for the task than Nero – of that there was to be no doubt.

 **End**

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 **Thank you very much for your time. If you enjoyed this project then you're more than welcome to leave feedback. I'm grateful for all the support my readers give. Until next time, keep on following Fate and I might see you again in the next story I work on!**

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